My favorite nyc store: davide cenci

To LA Guy: What exactly is the "image" of the Ivy League? I graduated from that school in Cambridge to which you refer, but your comments seem to me to be hard to interpret. I know that when I was in college, when asked where we were in school, most of my classmates and I would answer that we "go to school in Massachusetts," then when pressed further, would say "Boston," and only when asked directly would we answer Harvard. This was a result of the common reaction one receives when saying (s)he goes to Harvard. Does "dropping the H-bomb" work? If so, I wouldn't say the students are buying the hype, I would say the other people are. If it doesn't work, then yes, it indicates that the students seem to think their attendance at Harvard seem to or should make them somehow better in the eyes of others. You think the Ivies are over-rated; that's your opinion, to which you are entitled. In my post-undergrad life, I've worked with people in senior management at many very large and successful companies and on Wall Street, as well as attending law school at Stanford. What I can tell you is that nowhere have I come close to finding such a concentration of brilliant and interesting people as I found at Harvard. So, it depends how you're rating things; was the education any better than at any number of other schools? Perhaps not, but what an extraordinary and heterogeneous collection of talent.

I just think that the image of the "Ivy League" is highly overrated and not just a little pretentious.  Do you know that here at Harvard, undergrads refer to using their Harvard affiliation as a pickup line as "Dropping the H-Bomb"?  Buying your own hype - how sad is that?

Click to expand...

If it works, I say more power to them.  After all, you don't see men who look like Brad Pitt walking around with paper bags over their heads or rich men driving Ford Escorts.

Shoefan,

I think that, for the undergrads, in particular, there is a difficult balance to strike between false modesty, and arrogance. Of course they should be proud to have gotten into Harvard. The majority of students are not, contrary to popular opinion, riding on daddy's dime, but are on the whole a very engaged and intelligent bunch.

Does the H-bomb work? I've never seen it, but I assume that it must in some cases. It's probably somewhere between being charming and handsome and using lines about the jeans being mirrors and one's ability to see oneself in them. But maybe I used the phrase "buying their own hype" inappropriately. I should have said "Selling their own hype". Does that make more sense?

Ambulance,

After all, you don't see men who look like Brad Pitt walking around with paper bags over their heads

Click to expand...

I've done that Just kidding. Why would I? I don't look like Brad Pitt (looks sort of like a bum, albeit a handsome one, in real life, btw.)

There's an old joke about two old Mainers that see a couple Harvard professors approaching, and one says to the other: "They sure know a lot, but don't realize nothing." Having grown up in Cambridge, but not attended Harvard, I have a couple opinions on the matter. Â The fact is, dropping the H bomb does work, but only with chicken-heads that would be impressed by such a thing. Â Most women (grown and sexy I'm talking about) don't want to date a college student clown, especially one who's pompous about the school he hasn't even graduated from yet. Â It does, however, work on BC chicks from Framingham with dreams of a Wall Street banker boyfriend. Â (By the way, you can drop the H-bomb without going to Harvard - I did it plenty in high school.) Shoefan, respectfully, in one paragraph you say "I wouldn't say the students are buying the hype, I would say the other people are", but then go on to say "What I can tell you is that nowhere have I come close to finding such a concentration of brilliant and interesting people as I found at Harvard." Â That, I would say, is buying the hype.

Shoefan, respectfully, in one paragraph you say "I wouldn't say the students are buying the hype, I would say the other people are", but then go on to say "What I can tell you is that nowhere have I come close to finding such a concentration of brilliant and interesting people as I found at Harvard." That, I would say, is buying the hype.

Click to expand...

How is that buying the hype? It's based on my own experience and observations over the past 25 years, from undergraduate days until now. Believe me, I also knew lots of people at Harvard with whom I was wholly unimpressed, but the fact remains that, on the whole, it was an incredible student body. Just because someone attends Harvard does not guarantee (s)he is brilliant (or talented, or whatever), but in aggregate, the student body was remarkable. This statement is based on actual my experience, not others' opinions. No offense intended, but what basis do you have for rejecting the accuracy of my opinion or asserting that my opinion is the result of buying the hype?

You're right - your opinion is your opinion, and I have no way of knowing the processes that led to it.

However, being surrounded by Harvard students and faculty from birth, your sentiments are not echoed by these people. From undergrads to professors emeritus, they all agree that Harvard attracts a first-rate student body, but is not the ivory tower that many people, and you yourself, purport it to be. Granted, this is all second-hand; and if your breadth of knowledge mirrors the sartorial knowledge you've displayed on this board, then you are a fine example of why Harvard has the reputation it does.

Well this post has developed an original flavor unto itself...
In regards to Harvard, it's a wonderful place populated with some of the most amazing undergrads in the U.S.  However, what about any of the myriad of fine educational institutions that exist in the US or rest of the world?  I thought that my introductory Chemistry class was pretty cool since I got to chat with a Secret Service agent when the lectures were boring and had a conversation with a random asian girl who I later found out to be a gold medal Olympist...  An ex took classes at Princeton with Maya Angelou who is apparently a terrible lecturer.  At Cambridge, the original version, Watson or Crick, I can't remember which one is still active/alive, will give talks periodically.  Anyways, I just wanted to emphasize that most universities or places of higher learning are attended by equally impressive students....

btw, when is naturalat or thracoozag gonna hook me up with an ABT dancer or violinist from Julliard (another exemplary establishment)?

Thanks for the compliment. I never said it is an ivory tower; I just said Harvard had the most talented group of people I've ever experienced, a group that I found extraordinary. I guess I agree with those whom you cite who say it attracts a first-rate student body. Anyway, this has nothing to do with men's fashion.

Oh yeah...I've never seen the H bomb work in a social setting. The MIT guys chuckle, the Yale guys puke, the BU girls swoon, and the Wellesley girls laugh that the Truck back to BFE has a greater percentage of guys than gals...

FWIW, please say that you didn't attend Andover or Exeter...

At Cambridge, the original version, Watson or Crick, I can't remember which one is still active/alive, will give talks periodically.

Click to expand...

That would be James Watson.  I saw that guy back in California too.  He is a crazy old man who thinks that there should be mandatory screening for genetic diseases (that is definitely on record.)  There are a lot of nutters in academia  I totally hijacked this thread, so, to summarize: David Cenci, good. Pretentious ivy-leaguers or ivy wannabees... need a slap. Me, on yet another rant.

 Do you know that here at Harvard, undergrads refer to using their Harvard affiliation as a pickup line as "Dropping the H-Bomb"?  Buying your own hype - how sad is that?

Click to expand...

I've coached a Harvard undergrad in Pick-up, and trust me, the "I go to Harvard" line is terrible. It conveys all the wrong things. No one is getting laid with that line.

Originally posted by shoefan:
The NY store is in fact much smaller than the Rome store, but I think the lay-out is better (of course, I was at the Rome store during their January sale, so it was a mob scene.)

Click to expand...

I would not know about the NY store, but they did refer to it as "our little store". I go to Italy twice a year, and Cenci is always a mess.

Originally posted by shoefan:
What I can tell you is that nowhere have I come close to finding such a concentration of brilliant and interesting people as I found at Harvard. So, it depends how you're rating things; was the education any better than at any number of other schools? Perhaps not, but what an extraordinary and heterogeneous collection of talent.

Click to expand...

I think the concentration of talent is based on the specialty of the school. I for one did not even consider Harvard for my doctorate in Molec. Bio., not enough talent there compared to say CALTECH, Berkeley, Stanford, Rockerfeller Inst., Whitehead Inst, etc.

Originally posted by LA Guy:
That would be James Watson. I saw that guy back in California too. He is a crazy old man who thinks that there should be mandatory screening for genetic diseases (that is definitely on record.) There are a lot of nutters in academia

Click to expand...

Be careful, that is my doctorate advisor you're talking about. Jim has done so much to advance medicine and our own understanding of life, and by being the primary force behind the Human Genome Project, he has ensured that the basic tools for understanding and defeating diseases is in our midst. By calling such a brilliant man "crazy" is totally inane. He has done more for humanity than you could ever accomplish.

btw, when is naturalat or thracoozag gonna hook me up with an ABT dancer or violinist from Julliard (another exemplary establishment)?

Click to expand...

Trust me, unless you have a very wide streak of masochism, avoid both these types.

By calling such a brilliant man "crazy" is totally inane. He has done more for humanity than you could ever accomplish.

Click to expand...

I didn't mean to disparage his accomplishments to science. I reserve my right to comment on his political views though. Be careful, you're starting to sound like an ornery academic BTW, your screen name makes a lot more sense now.